Running Bear's August 2022 Coffee Shop

[Boris]

Credit ratings are BS and that is being polite. My son 35 and single was at 790 back in May. Takes on a huge about of debt to buy some planes for a business adventure. He was at 840 the other day on his personal rating. Doesn’t have the planes yet and the payment for planes to be entered into production was a loan.

Lots of Collection Agencies used to run Credit Reports and check credit ratings on the debtors they were trying to collect against. The ratings are so fricking phony and tell nothing about the person’s ability or desire to pay back a debt

Tom O: Second That. Just another scheme to create uncertanty among the masses and sell monthly credit monitoring. Credit scores do not predict anything...They tell me I have too much debt, because I still owe, combined, less than 90K on a propety appraised last year at 500K. The score is in the low 800s, but if I were to borrow, my rate/terms wouldn't be any better than anyone else, because they hold all the cards. It is all BS.

 

[TLOC]

I don't understand that about the rent. They were paid the PPP which was in excess of their regular paying job. Why are they forgiven of rent then?
How much of that PPP money went to offshore scammers, never to be seen again but we have to pay for it? Real good stewardship of our tax dollars, huh?

They weren’t forgiven the rent payments. The PPP was for businesses to keep going or if impacted by the 1st shutdowns help them stay afloat. PPP is complicated and we never applied because we were not laying off employees. There was no program to help landlords. There was a federal program for lenders who were not receiving mortgage payments.

The $1500 payments to the tax payers were done with no strings attached. If you got the Trump regimes $1500 spend it as you will. Payments that came under Biden’s regime were under the same conditions, if you qualified by income they sent you the money and still do under much stricter guidelines. Do what you want with it. It was meant for mortgages, rents or food.

The federal and state governments mandated for Covid that no evictions could occur, This happened under the Trump rule. This was also true for past due mortgage payments. In Wisconsin and other states from 11/1 to 4/1 there are also no allowed evictions or energy turnoffs for non payments. That has been enforce for many years and neither Mr. Trump or Biden had anything to do with that. Every state has similar type of laws.

None of this discussion is political it just stating both parties went way to far and partly has caused todays issues.

 

[Jaz avalley]

Got my Tesla. This is about as complex as the Space Shuttle. Didn't find the climate control till my daughter took it for a drive.

Lol, and be careful you keep your hands on the wheel,look for the blue light on the screen and most important of all…if your car gets into a situation it cannot cope with…it gives up and stops. Or worse suddenly breaks, they often hate cars pulling out from side roads incorrectly, hate roundabouts - a European thing - hate small single windy tracks - a Brit thing - and get highly nervous over weeds.

That said your Tesla enables more relaxed motorway,highway driving,
has excellent camera surveillanc, shame no camera at the front side to see traffic as you pull out - our bmw had that I do miss it -
remember if using your own cables to mark them and not accidentally leave them behind - an expensive mistake
which Tesla?
re charging costs are truly a major saving, servicing not a thing you need worry about budgeting for, put takeaways in the trunk so no car smell!, did you go white ’leather’? Ours is still pretty pristine 18 months later.
They regularly do free updates, bonus, but do move the controls around - annnnoying! You just learn how to then they shift it lol.
I recommend the lock system so you need to know the four digit before driving, the personalised seating position is excellent,make sure you learn how you wipers work,searching for it whilst driving is hair tearing, left hand stick on my dec 2020 model,IF you wish you could photograph something,someone,press the horn, it then records on the removable memory stick, which is in the glove compartment, be careful not to knock it. if you have a dog, or a hot car and can afford the electricity the dog cooling option is excellent. We put a first aid front and back,1. Because you can and w in Ann accident often one end can be an issue, and invest in the trauma bandage which stops massive blood loss,I bought 6, w in car. And for you US guys a coughs s hooting accident would greatly benefit from one of these or two, do not remove them! Only a hospital should remove them the coagulate the blood and if removed incorrectly can be really bad, if used mention it to paramedics and put tag on the person so this is not overlooked!
Check out any supermarket that do free power ups, usually not fast but free and you can pay for faster, the super charger is likely on your list for free miles for a year, fyi we barely used 20 percent in our free year but then we have lots of free home solar. If you do not have a solar array, do consider one, the resulting free solar will be a major bonus (of course you need pay back on the solar array, but at present costs that is massively reduced pay off time). Check if your able to get a Tesla insurance rate, we did the Tesla offer far far cheaper, for the car insurance, but look at your electricity anyway, Tesla is starting their own but had tie ins with power companies buy Tesla car, powerwall roofing plus the correct electricity company can get you sone seriously good deals. We got our so;at array dithered over the powerwall which we had permission for then delayed then when we asked a company to do it they said they had to check again with the power company who refused…wtf! Yep we missed out on the powerwall battery, only one usually to get on a savings scheme…..gggggrrrrrrr.
We invested in the sun roof, does help keep the car cooler, which must mean less cooling.
SET your battery to charge upto to 80 or 90 percent NOT 100 except on long journeys, do not let battery go below 20 percent and the lifetime of your battery will be better for it, read any info about care of batteries to see the reasoning.
When you rely on your phone, still put the card in your wallet, run out of phone power and your stuck! IF you get in the car, and get a warning about no card, best to drive home, because when you turn off it might refuse to let you restart, and most important of all when you leave car 1. Take the bloody phone - it’s a key, 2. Check the noise and look to see the mirrors shut, other wise sone smarter person seeing a Tesla with the car empty and the mirrors not folded can just get in and drive away with your car and phone!!!!!
My husband a couple of times, me several….not funny,panic running back to car!

 

[troyphoto]

I'm up. Coffee made.

I typed "Coffee mad." Then I stared at the screen. Well, I hope the coffee isn't mad. That would suck. I won't drink mad coffee.

Heard back from the doc and the lab. My creatinine snuck up in the month between my vampire visits. 1.22 went to 1.29.

Since I'm dealing with Plantar, I've been trying to work in some collagen powder in my coffee (no loans required, so the predatory lenders don't get profit off my foot issue!) I had three days or so of it the week before my last blood draw.

But, still... want to keep the kidneys healthy.

I'll be dropping my daily gallon of iced tea (mix of black and green teas 2:1) and switching to water post coffee, saving the diet sodas to going out for meals. And I'll drop off some of my BBQ meats for lunch. Next draw is scheduled for 6 Sept, right after the US's Labor Day holiday. I've got a dentist appointment an hour later the same day.

And I'll need a post-vampire donut break in-between visits. Drat, I'll have to run home to brush my teeth. Want to be nice to the hygenist. She comes equipped with sharp pointy things. Always give her a clean mouth to work in. Just sayin!

It's game day today. So, I'll try to get my knights into action. They're semi-painted right now. We'll see how they work. Painted models always perform better.

Oh, and I need to rewire the lights in the train room. The one over the new sink and counter needs to be on its own switch. Fortunately, there is an unused switch in the current rack of three for that area. Never been able to figure out what it goes to. Being a 50-year-old building, with multiple owners in here, it's no wonder we've got extra switches. Got one in the main hallway that doesn't go to anything I can find.

I always imagine it turning on a light in the neighbor's garage. But they've never complained.

So, when I feel good enough to spend time on the step ladder moving ceiling tiles, I'll pull that puck light off the main run, and drop its lead down to the switch box. I'll probably add a second puck LED right over the sink on the same circuit. No need to light up the entire train area just to get a cup of coffee, or clean out a mini-paint brush.

 

[CambriaArea51]

Good morning...A cool 56 this morning, a taste of fall. Coffee Flo and a refill for Troy.

 

[D&J RailRoad]

Yep, still learning all the features of the Tesla. I have the solar array so free electricity now. Haven't had an electric bill for over a year now. I had a level two charger installed so I can charge to 100% overnight. Takes about 6 hours from a 5% battery. I'm sure the Supercharge can do it in 45 minutes.
No dogs, no kids, no wife. I can't figure out the personal seat position. Everytime I get in the car it wants to crush me up against the steering wheel. I'm 6'4" but it wants to set things for a midget. I have to hit the stop icon on the screen, then it backs away but starts forward again. I've tried easy entry, that doesn't help. I have to hit my icon name a couple times.
Still not clear why the car shouldn't be charged to 100%.
Disregard. Just found it. Regenerative braking won't work and it degrades the battery faster.

 

[BigGRacing]

Gary: Fantastic Photos. They would definitely make great background murals for a contemporary model railroad. Irving seems to be the ultimate conglomerate. They seem to be in to everything, Ship Building, Heavy Equipment, Chemical Tankers (Ship), Lumber, and retail service stations among my observations, and probably a whole lot more.

You are so correct on Irving, both of my sons and myself have all worked for Irving at one point or another. I never thought of background photos but you are right. I am doing my layout looking in the opposite direction. Your layout looks incredible with its backdrop!

and good morning all, fresh honey on my bagel and in my coffee this morning from my friends beehive…..delicious.

Heading to the small train show in Windsor, Nova Scotia this morning.

 

[bnsf971]

Yep, still learning all the features of the Tesla. I have the solar array so free electricity now. Haven't had an electric bill for over a year now. I had a level two charger installed so I can charge to 100% overnight. Takes about 6 hours from a 5% battery. I'm sure the Supercharge can do it in 45 minutes.
No dogs, no kids, no wife. I can't figure out the personal seat position. Everytime I get in the car it wants to crush me up against the steering wheel. I'm 6'4" but it wants to set things for a midget. I have to hit the stop icon on the screen, then it backs away but starts forward again. I've tried easy entry, that doesn't help. I have to hit my icon name a couple times.
Still not clear why the car shouldn't be charged to 100%.
Disregard. Just found it. Regenerative braking won't work and it degrades the battery faster.

Ken, they should have given you a phone number to call for questions about your car, like how to keep the seat from trying to make you feel like a crushed beer can.
As for the battery charging, it has long been recommended to not charge a lithium battery past 80% to maximize its lifespan. That final 20% degrades it faster than recharging to 80%. Tesla charging is software controlled, so it may already integrate that into its capacity. That's another thing you can ask them when you get them on the horn.

 

[D&J RailRoad]

A phone number? Yeah. Ever try to get ahold of anybody from Tesla by phone. A solid non-event. If your question isn't in their FAQ list, it doesn't get addressed.
I start the inquiry of buying this Tesla over a year ago. I have not ever in the whole time been able to talk to ANYBODY by phone or get a response by email, EVER. I've put in requests for a test drive 5 times and no response. I've tried calling their phone for their stores, only get a pre-recorded battery of responses.
Tesla is more like a vending machine. Don't ask stupid questions, just buy the car and get gone.
When I picked my car up a couple days ago, they couldn't answer my question about getting a garage door opener installed. Just buy the accessory then go on my app and schedule an install appointment.

 

[bnsf971]

A phone number? Yeah. Ever try to get ahold of anybody from Tesla by phone. A solid non-event. If your question isn't in their FAQ list, it doesn't get addressed.
I start the inquiry of buying this Tesla over a year ago. I have not ever in the whole time been able to talk to ANYBODY by phone or get a response by email, EVER. I've put in requests for a test drive 5 times and no response. I've tried calling their phone for their stores, only get a pre-recorded battery of responses.
Tesla is more like a vending machine. Don't ask stupid questions, just buy the car and get gone.
When I picked my car up a couple days ago, they couldn't answer my question about getting a garage door opener installed. Just buy the accessory then go on my app and schedule an install appointment.

Model Y Owner's Manual | Tesla

Learn how various adjustments (mirrors, seats, etc.) are saved to a driver's profile so you only need to adjust them once.

www.tesla.com

 

[D&J RailRoad]

Thanks Gomez. I've been reading through that but it doesn't seem to be working.
I set my profile again, set the seat back, hit save. Get outa the car then back in and it crushes me against the steering wheel.

 

[bnsf971]

Thanks Gomez. I've been reading through that but it doesn't seem to be working.
I set my profile again, set the seat back, hit save. Get outa the car then back in and it crushes me against the steering wheel.

Are you sure they didn't send you this car, instead of what you ordered?

 

[bnsf971]

There may be a correlation...

 

[OBTC 1909]

Good morning all! Sunny and 67 heading for 85 with a heat index of 95. No big plans for the day. Hoping to relax and just enjoy some time off. My new week of math assignments hasn't been opened on the website yet so can't work on it until that happens. My wife is wanting to run to several stores today so I may tag along for a change. Usually I just stay home while she's doing that but I'll probably go along for the ride today. Hope you all have a great day!

 

[TLOC]

Good morning to modelers of scale things, Tesla owners and gonna be owners, non predatory lender borrowers and lovers of life from a crispy cool morning in Wisconsin. 49f/9.4c degrees overnight to maybe 80/ 26.6 later and it’s 60/15.5 now. Possible rains but in the late evening. High winds and hail along with the wet stuff. Had to wear a hoodie the whole walk this morning.

I did get the ties laid down again after reinforcing the base they are on in the transload area. The background Warehouse building has all the tilt up concrete panels in place. Today I am going through my box of building details. Electric panels, gas meters, doors, roll ups and vents among some of what I will be looking for. I would prefer to use what I have on this one then to make them from scratch. Pipes, gutters, downspouts, conduit and wall A/C units may have to be scratch but not too much. I have the rail set out that I will be using and was thinking 39’ pieces with the 4 hole rail joiners and decided those details will be covered so go with the full strip of rail. I did dig the pit for the auger to sit for unloading. That needs to be lined before the rails are installed.

A Farmer Market after it hits 70 this morning and a possible grocery run. Gas discount of $.30 for each $60.00 spent which is like a bag and 1/2 lately. If not today the gas sale runs into Monday. We have noticed through the Monday grocery runs are iffy for the sales items. They definitely are shorter staffed on Monday then the rest of the week with only full shelves over the weekend with the teenagers working.

Our rescue lady of 2 weeks ago stopped in last night to says thanks and good bye. She and 1 of the guys are heading to El Paso, Illinois to she says start a new life. The lady the 2 guys went to Mexico last Winter to rescue and needing bailing out of the Mexican jail is still here working and going to the UW Veterinarian School of Medicine. She only needs like 3 classes to get her degree for a USA license. She is excellent with the horses and llamas.

Around 1 the surveyor will be here with the “final” solution to our property divisions. Her daughter is going to come along to the grandson’s 5PM soccer game and join us for supper at 5 Guys and overnight with the grandkids. The kids have everything planned out including the moms and grandmom riding Sunday.

If you need a mortgage and it was 2.5% in January at the ending of Covid why without Covid has it risen on average in the USA to 5.8%? I remember not too many years (7) ago a rate under 6% was very good, Now the administration is breaking down the school loans along racial lines. The average debt owed is just under $30, 000. If they can’t pay that back how are they living. Can they all be in mom and dad’s basements. Please start teaching money management as a high school requirement to graduate. Jeez…

 

[D&J RailRoad]

Yeah, that's what my Tesla tries to do. Crush me against the steering wheel.
Actually, this morning, it didn't do that, but it kept wanting me to swipe the card on the center counsel.
Farmers market here this morning. Annoying people in line. As if they are surprised they have to pay for their stuff. Cashier rings up the final price, they look at the register then start digging into their suitcase for the carry bag that contains their purse where their wallet is. They have to lay out half the contents of the purse to find their wallet, then after paying, they have to decide if they want to put the contents back in the purse or into the carry bag.
There is usually the County Democrat party tent set up there but not today for some reason. They only keep banging that drum about abortion as if that's the only thing that people care about. Inflation, national security, gas prices, energy prices, civil unrest, etc. but abortion is front and center without a mention of anything else. I would think they might pass out Sopher Clamps with their candidate's name on it like others would pass out business cards or pens.

 

[troyphoto]

Passing right on by the poly-tics posts...

Yep... right on past those. Will not engage.

In the meantime, what other e-vehicles are people purchasing. So far I'm not impressed by anything with a big T on it. Too many horror stories are coming out about those things.

 

[santafewillie]

Good Morning All. Clear and 73° out there this morning. Looks like a great week coming up weatherwise.

Started back to serious mowing yesterday after a two month hiatus. Used the little battery powered mower to get some hard to mow areas around the pool, and when the dew dried after lunch, I spent about 45 minutes on the tractor getting part of the front yard and the area between the pool and train shed. Ran out of gas there so I walked over to the pool and got in. I have another full gas can ready, but decided to wait until today to resume. I generally average about 2 acres per gallon, so this 2.5 gallon can will last until I remember to fill both of them up. Since it had been so long since the last mowing, I forgot which orientation that I used, so yesterday I just mowed on the SE to NW diagonal pattern. Probably doesn't really make a difference, but I think that it works better for the grass to rotate directions each time. Plus it does break the monotony of mowing. If I get bored today, I'll fill a couple of weedeater spools with the .080 filament since that's next. Most years I have to mow from early February until mid-December with a six week break in late July - Labor Day. The time frame shifted this season and started in early June and went til the surprise August thunderstorms last Sunday night, ten weeks this year! Since I don't owe any money on the tractor, I guess that I cannot ask for forgiveness.

Besides resuming mowing, today looks like laundry and more tomato preserving.

Thanks for the likes on yesterday's postings; Chad, Sherrel, Hughie, Karl, Tom O, James, Joe, Dave B, Patrick, Louis, Tom, Guy, Rick, George, Smudge, OB Ken, Gary.

Out in the train shed yesterday, I returned to the latest project, but made no photogenic progress. I made some decisions on which direction to go and what to do next. I also ran a few trains which brings this up. I may have asked for opinions before, but here it is again.
I have a turnback loop on the end of a peninsula on both levels. On the lower level I had added a fascia with a 1.125" guard rail on it.

Never had a derailment. On the upper level I have not yet added the fascia, so no guardrail.

In the six years since I made this peninsula, I have not had a derailment there either.

I am undecided as to what to do. Since it is at almost eye level, an 1.125" rail would obscure the view both close and far. The track itself is 33" radius, so nothing drastic. The rail is about .375" tall including the roadbed. The inner loop is lower and about 29.75" radius. The two decks are offset a little so anything falling would only drop 18", serious enough but not to the floor.

I am guessing that I could go with a .375" or even a .5" tall guard rail, or since the trackwork is obviously very good, nothing at all!
In the background you can see a piece of 8' Masonite being stretched into shape. It's just a matter of what measurement to use when I mount it.
Opinions please?


Dave B - I am pretty much a homebody myself. Usually one major and one minor road trip a year and I am done. I would rather spend time in the garden mostly. And then there is the train shed. I like running trains, sometimes to the detriment of completing projects.
Gary - If I was modeling a shipyard scene, I would use your pictures yesterday for the backdrop. Nice work and the nachos looked great.
Ken (D&J) -

I have the solar array so free electricity now. Haven't had an electric bill for over a year now.

Yes, but how much did the solar array cost you to begin with? I looked into that recently and realized that it would take me 33 years of no electric bill to make the payback! I am 70!

Well here in Texas, many are celebrating LBJ's birthday. Many others are not as they still remember that he hoisted Medicaid on us. Thousands of people who never paid into the system getting something for free! Hmmmh! Do I spot a trend here? I'm still pissed about the student loan debacle.
Otherwise everyone have a wonderful day.

 

[Boris]

You are so correct on Irving, both of my sons and myself have all worked for Irving at one point or another. I never thought of background photos but you are right. I am doing my layout looking in the opposite direction. Your layout looks incredible with its backdrop!

and good morning all, fresh honey on my bagel and in my coffee this morning from my friends beehive…..delicious.

Heading to the small train show in Windsor, Nova Scotia this morning.

Gary: Thank you. I am quite pleased with the photo backdrop. It only backs one 4' x 2' module. Sure makes a difference vs. sky blue paint.
The next challenge is to find a photo that will fit the adjacent module, and not clash with the existing photo mural.

We used to switch a place in Carteret, NJ., GATX Terminals, (Another monster company). This was a regular port of call for Irving tankers.

My layout is set up, so when you view it, you are out on the Delaware River, looking inland, which places the PRR in the Foreground, and the Reading toward the background. Depending on the "neighborhood", the background is a distant tree line with either residential / comercial buildings or industrial structures as back ground. I have a lot of creative work to do.

Fresh honey...what a luxury. My DIL, has a friend who maintains hives near Alexandria Bay, NY, which is where I-81 crosses the St. Lawrence into Ontario. DIL hogs all the "samples"

Any more progress on the ship?

 

[D&J RailRoad]

Everyone keeps drifting to the perspective of solar panels of break even point. The thing ya should be looking at is home energy costs and where it's going. Petroleum will end. That has been said many times and efforts to that end aren't just sorta maybe.
While most people ignore what's bein said by powers that be because they're above all that. Other's are payin attention. My neighbors are sayin, "when power goes out they'll come to my house, or when gas is gone they'll catch a ride with me." Sorry folks. You all should have been payin attention, now, get off my lawn.